


Reflection

by KibaSin



Series: Past Time [55]
Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale, 幽☆遊☆白書 | YuYu Hakusho: Ghost Files
Genre: F/M, Humor, Mild Language, Minor Violence, One Shot, Psychological Drama, Self Confidence Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-30
Updated: 2013-11-30
Packaged: 2018-01-03 00:27:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1063500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KibaSin/pseuds/KibaSin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Each time you look in the mirror, Kagome, what do you see?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reflection

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any material belonging to the respective owners of _Inuyasha_ or _Yu Yu Hakusho_.

* * *

Giving a sigh, she reached into the bag sitting next to the couch. Smiling at the young woman at her side, she saw that she was once again frowning, just as her mother had said she'd been doing lately. However, a small smile turned onto the woman's face, when she grabbed a hold of the metal item she'd brought. "We're going to try something a little different this time, alright?"

The young woman nodded, once again remaining silent.

Sighing again, she placed the item onto the table, and watched as the girl moved her eyes over it for a moment, and then frowned a little at her. Smiling a little more, she motioned toward the mirror, saying, "Now, why don't you tell me what you see."

"What I see?" the girl asked.

"Yes," she nodded. "Tell me what you see in the mirror, Kagome."

 _What I see_ , Kagome thought, turning her head toward the small mirror,  _in the mirror?_

"Go on, Kagome," she pressed. "Tell me what you see."

Kagome looked into the mirror, one that sent a small shiver down her spine from how much it reminded her of Kanna's. The small albino that had once worked obediently for her worst enemy, though in the end the small child-like incarnation had been set free. Looking a little deeper, however, she blinked, as it seemed to ripple inside. "I see…" she began, watching as her reflection changed.  _Kikyo._

Allowing her smile to slip at Kagome's pause, as she continued to gaze deeply into the mirror, she reached out in order to grip her shoulder. The girl turned toward her, startled, and she allowed her smile to return. "Each time you look into the mirror, Kagome, what do you see? You can tell me, you know that, don't you?"

"Y-yes, I know," Kagome said. "I see… see myself smiling; happy, with my friends."

A frown crossed her face, and she gripped the girl's shoulder a bit harder. "You remember, don't you, that I told you I can tell whenever you are lying?" she asked. "Don't you, Kagome?"

Kagome gulped, knowing she was caught. "I remember," she whispered.

"Then tell me what you see in the mirror," she pressed again, her voice harder than before.

"I-I see," she started.

"Don't lie to me, Kagome," she stated quickly.

"It's not important." Kagome turned her face away, her eyes gently moving over the mirror, before turning away quickly. She didn't wish to see her incarnation's cold eyes staring at her with such hatred as they had been a moment ago. She didn't wish to remember Inuyasha's words as he told her she would never be as good as Kikyo. She didn't wish to remember the moment she was pulled back into the future because of a toddler, leaving her friends alone and probably heartbroken.

"Everything we talk about is important, Kagome," she said. "There's nothing we talk about that can be deemed as unimportant. So tell me what you see."

"It's not important," Kagome growled darkly, shrugging the woman's hand off her shoulder. She didn't wish to talk about it. The councilor may think that she knew everything, but she didn't. She didn't need to know about her past just because her mother was worried about her change in attitude.

"It is important, now tell me what you see!" she snapped.

"Bite me," Kagome hissed.

Sighing again, she brought her hand up to run through her hair. "Very well, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. However, I think that now is the perfect time to tell you what has been decided."

"Decided?" Kagome asked, glancing up at the woman. Did she work for that idiot Koenma? She knew that the brat had someone working for him, though she'd never met them, since he'd used some strange device to rip her away from the past once she'd put the Shikon no Tama back together. Still, she didn't like the sound of those words, not with the way she said them.

"I spoke with your mother, and we thought it might be best if you were  _away_  from the shrine for a while," she said.

"Away from the shrine?" Kagome asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Kagome."

"Mama?" Kagome asked, turning her head to the woman now standing in the archway. However, behind her stood another woman, and she frowned a little at the fact that she was holding a bag in her hand. "Auntie Atsuko?"

"I think it best that you were away from the  _shrine_ ," her mother stressed the word, "for a period of time. Until you're feeling better, that is." She smiled in reassurance, hoping that her oldest wouldn't argue on the matter, though she knew that her hopes would most likely be dashed. She'd always had her father's temper.

"I-I can't leave you here all alone, mama!" Kagome argued.

"I won't be alone, Kagome," her mother smiled. "I'll have Souta." She smiled a little more, "And don't worry, Atsuko will take good care of you. I'm sure that the change of scenery will help you move on, make new friends, and stop worrying about what might happen if you're not here."

"But mama…"

"You're going, and that's final," her mother stated.

* * *

"Hello," she said softly, bringing her hand up to wave a bit. The girl staring at her narrowed her eyes, before turning toward the boy standing at her side and beginning to shake her fist. She was not sure why her cousin allowed it to happen, since the girl accused him of cheating, before throwing a punch at his head that landed quite nicely.

"Hey," Yusuke grumbled as he rubbed his jaw. "What the hell was that for, Keiko?"

Keiko huffed, "I just shouted it, and you still don't hear what I said, Yusuke? I swear, do you listen to anything I say?"

"Of course I do!" he defended. "But I'd like to know why in the hell you just hit me when I've done absolutely nothing wrong. In fact, I've even gotten that damn Koenma to leave me alone for the last week, which, if you don't remember, allowed me to go on those dates you're always shoutin' about."

"Then—then, what do you call this?" Keiko motioned toward the girl standing at her boyfriend's side.

"Her?" Yusuke asked, motioning toward her. Watching Keiko cross her arms, tap her foot, and nod, he scowled. "Well, I don't know what yer problem is, Keiko, but this is my cousin, Kagome. She's staying with us because of some problem at home, and I'm supposed to show her around and make her meet new friends."

"I think you're supposed to  _help_  me make new friends, Yusuke," Kagome scowled.

"Same thing," Yusuke mumbled. Then he softly said something about whining, which earned him another slap from his girlfriend and a foot stomping on his from his cousin. "Ouch!"

"Served you right, Yusuke," Keiko huffed. Then, turning to Kagome, she blushed a little, before saying, "I'm so sorry about assuming something like that so quickly. Sometimes I just get so worried since he's always off to…  _work_."

"That's ok," Kagome smiled. "There was no harm done, since I actually found it rather funny."

"Yeah," Keiko laughed a bit, "but you're just so pretty that I couldn't help but think that maybe Yusuke was taking you out. And that maybe he was just keeping me on the side for whenever he decided he needed a break."

Kagome blinked, blushing darkly from the words. "I—I'm really not all that great."

Keiko blinked in surprise, "What are you talking about? You're beautiful, especially your eyes. Will it offend you if I asked whether they are contacts or not?"

"Um, no," Kagome said softly. "And, they're not."

"Oh," Keiko tilted her head a bit. It was rather unusual to find a person with such lovely blue eyes like Kagome's among their culture. But she supposed that there would always be that one lucky person who got a dominant trait that allowed them to get such pretty features. Like Kurama's green eyes, though truly it was the demon that merged with him that caused that occurrence.

"Um," Kagome bite her lip, "you're quite pretty yourself, Keiko."

Keiko felt a blush rise onto her cheeks. She knew that next to Yusuke's cousin she would seem plain—average. However, she took the complement in stride, not wishing to make herself seem rude in front of her boyfriend's family member. "Thank you so much, but I'm really not…"

"Yusuke's lucky to have someone like you," Kagome smiled. "Not just because you're pretty, but because he needs the firm hand to keep him down sometimes."

Yusuke scowled, "Hey, that was a one  _time_  thing, Kagome! And you promised to never bring that crap up again!"

Kagome sent him a sideward glance, and shook her head. "I wasn't referring to  _that_ , Yusuke," she sighed. Then, she turned her attention back to Keiko, and continued, "You'll be good for him, since he never seems to know up from down."

"You want me to teach you left  _from_  right?" Yusuke grumbled. If he had known that his cousin would turn on him so suddenly once meeting his girlfriend, he would have dragged her in the other direction. Then again, that direction held the old hag, the ice maiden, Yukina, and the fire apparition, Hiei—possibly Kurama if he was there, too. That, he decided, might not be anymore positive, since Kagome would probably earn Genkai's respect within minutes, make quick friends with Yukina, and somehow form some weird bond with Hiei. He did  _not_  need another reason for Genkai to get on his ass, Yukina to think ill of him, or Hiei to try and use his body as target practice.

Kagome looked over at him again, "Wasn't I the one that saved your butt the first time you ever got into a fight? Seriously, Yusuke, I don't need you teaching me anything, since I think  _I_  was the one to teach you left from right hook anyway."

Keiko giggled, "I'll make sure to teach him all I can, Kagome."

Yusuke continued to grumble.

"Oh, stop trying to be so depressing, Yusuke," Kagome said. "You know its not going to work, and you're supposed to show me around. After all, Auntie Atsuko would be very disappointed in you if you left me to roam these gang-infested streets. I'm sure that even if she's had a bit to drink, you would get yourself into big trouble, and I don't want that to happen."

Yusuke did not pay her much attention, as he lifted his arm and shouted out to someone he knew. In return, Kagome scowled at him, and noticed that Keiko was beginning to get annoyed with the fact that he was ignoring them both. However, she was rather curious with who he was waving at, and turned her attention toward the direction that he was facing. As she searched, it was not hard to find the one that Yusuke was using as an excuse to ignore them with, since one of them had his hand raised in return, while the shorter crossed his arms and walked forward.

"Shuichi! Hiei!" Yusuke shouted. At that moment he was considering himself blessed, since he would not have to cart around his girlfriend and cousin by himself. He loved them both, but he did not want to be reminded of embarrassing things by his cousin, nor badgered by Keiko to go on a date that Koenma would probably pull him away from. The two males walking toward him would give him the perfect distraction from that, since he knew that Keiko would be extra careful with what she said, considering the fact his cousin did not know about demons, and Kagome would probably speak when spoken to. After all, he was not stupid enough to not notice that his cousin did not like to speak out loud among a large group—which was rather strange, since he remembered her being quite outspoken and full of pride.

Hiei's eyes scanned over the new addition to the small group they now formed, his eyes narrowing when he realized that she was gazing back at him with the same calculating look. However, he found it slightly intriguing that she hid it underneath a smile and a bright look in her eyes. Not only that, but the fact that she was radiating a sense of purity made her someone to watch should she prove to be dangerous.

"Hello, Yusuke," Kurama greeted his friend. Then, he turned his attention to the small black haired girl standing at Keiko's side, and felt his counterpart perk up. "May I ask who your friend is?"

"Tch," Yusuke rolled his eyes. No doubt Kurama was looking at Kagome because of the strange aura she gave off,  _or_  because of his love for beautiful things. "This is my cousin, Higurashi Kagome. Kagome, this is Shuichi, and the shorter guy is Hiei."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Kagome smiled.

"Likewise," Kurama replied.

"Hn," Hiei grunted.

Yusuke spoke up, "Hiei doesn't say much, Kagome, so don't expect much from him. Unless you decide you want to argue with him, then he might have a few things that he'd like to tell you about yourself. I suggest staying away from that, unless you like people being rude to you."

"Thank you, Yusuke," Kagome growled. "You're such a helpful cousin, but I think I will judge people the way that I wish. If someone wishes to be soft spoken, or not speak at all, I find that it is usually because they do not trust other people very much. And that is understandable."

 _Whoa, when did Kagome suddenly become so deep_? Yusuke wondered. However, he did not have much time to think about it when her foot connected with his again. He really needed to watch out for that, since she had always been one to deliver him pain.

Hiei smirked when the detective grimaced. It seemed that though the female was quite odd, she would prove amusing.

' _Interesting, most humans would not come up with such a conclusion so quickly_.'

Kurama agreed with Youko, since most would merely find Hiei's quietness strange, and therefore rude. However, she had come to the conclusion that most people, though Hiei was quite un-human, were distant because of trust issues. The case was true for Hiei, which made it appear that she might be able to be one of the few humans to break that barrier that Hiei put up. But, what puzzled him even more, was that she was so quick to defend someone she did not even know.

"Ow, what the  _fuck_  was that one for?" Yusuke cursed. Then, he cursed at himself when her foot connected with his chin instead of his foot. He  _should_  have seen that one coming as soon as he opened his mouth.

"Yusuke!" Keiko hissed at his language. She would have hit him too if he was not backing away from them and toward his friends so quickly.

' _Oh, that's it,_ ' Youko cheered, ' _hit him again, little spitfire!_ '

 _Youko_ , Kurama sighed. However, he supposed that he should not try to discourage Youko, since Hiei seemed to be getting amusement from the show as well. Then again, Hiei was not apart of him.

"You know very well what it was for," Kagome muttered, " _Urameshi_  Yusuke."

Yusuke flinched. Oh, he did know what it was for. Kagome never used his complete name unless he had done something that she did not believe in. One of those things being the fact that he tried to make her see Hiei in the light that he saw him, an arrogant little demon prick that often helped him in some way. She always told him, when they were younger, that she would judge people the way she wanted to, not because he decided to judge them that way. He supposed he should have remembered that.

Especially after the Hiromi incident—she had hit him quite hard that day.

That girl, in his eyes, had been a  _bitch_. How Kagome saw anything good in her, and became friends with her, was beyond him. Kagome often did the impossible, though, and that day had been no different. She had snagged the bitch's heart in her hand and turned her nice, but only whenever Kagome was present—not that his cousin believed a word of it. She always believed that bitch was a good person, but she had never seen the bad side, the side that turned on him each time Kagome was just out of sight.

Keiko moved to Kagome's side, noticing the way that Yusuke was staying just out of reach of her hand and Kagome's foot. "Oh, Yusuke, stop being such a baby," she huffed.

"Stop hitting me!" Yusuke snapped.

"Stop being a jerk," Kagome replied.

"You know what, Kagome, when you stop being miss goody-goody, I'll think about it," Yusuke snarled.

Kagome's eyes narrowed, "You want me to stop being nice?"

' _Ohh, get him, little spitfire_!" Youko roared. He could feel it, something was about to happen, and Yusuke was going to become the target of it. He simply could not wait to see what that beautiful little human had in store for her relative.

Kurama was rather curious, as well, when he felt a shiver run down his spine.

"I think that's what I just said," Yusuke replied.

"So?" Kagome smiled a bit, her eyes dark. "You want me to be a jackass like yourself, do you? You want me to suddenly  _fucking_ curse up a storm and act like I'm the queen of the world? You want me to prove to you that I can kick your ass from here to wherever in the  _fuck_  you want it kicked to? You want me to drop my nice personality and show your little friends that I can, and most likely am, better than you? Is that what you want, Yusuke?"

Yusuke was so stunned that he did not speak. He had never heard such language leave his cousin's mouth.

"Well, it's a shame that you've already got that spot filled, Yusuke, or I might take you up on that offer," Kagome huffed.

"Holy crap, Kagome!" Yusuke burst out suddenly. "Where the hell did you learn that kind of language?"

"Most likely from you, idiot," Hiei said.

"What?" Yusuke shouted. "No way in hell I would teach my baby cousin such things!"

"He has a point, Yusuke," Kagome said. "You do say a lot of that stuff quite often, which would be the reason that I stated it all, and added afterward that you  _have_  that spot filled up with your ego. But, I suppose that I should not expect someone with a brain the size of a peanut to understand that—or stand so close to you, I might catch your idiocy."

"Hey," Yusuke yelled. He had known it was a bad idea to get his cousin anywhere near Hiei. The little bastard was already turning her words against him, and she was going right along with him.

"No, please don't say another word, Yusuke!" Kagome made a dramatic hand gesture that got her a giggle from Keiko. "I already feel bad enough for you as it is, I don't need  _another_  reason to cry at night!"

Yusuke looked stricken.

Hiei smirked. Yes, this human would be very amusing.

Keiko was not able to help herself, she laughed.

' _I like her, Red_ ,' Youko said.

_She is rather intriguing, isn't she?_

' _Of course she is!_ ' Youko replied. ' _Anyone would know that even before she decided to show off. After all, I didn't know there were any mikos still alive._ '

Kurama blinked, saying,  _I didn't either, Youko._

* * *

"So, Urameshi, you never told us why you're cousins here," Kuwabara said. "Mind explaining."

Yusuke scowled, before saying, "Not that it's any of your business, Kuwabara, but she's here because she wasn't doin' all that good back at the shrine where she lives. My mom said something about her fighting with her counselor over looking in a mirror. Apparently she disagreed with whatever in the hell the counselor wanted her to do, and she turned on her."

"Kagome had a counselor!" Kuwabara shouted.

"Shut up, moron!" Yusuke shouted over him, noticing that the girls were looking over toward them. "I promised that I wouldn't talk about it, so shut yer trap, will ya."

"But she looks fine," Kuwabara argued.

Hiei snorted, "Hn. She may look fine, but that does not mean that she is. There are such things as emotional pain, fool."

"I knew that, shrimp," Kuwabara growled.

"Then try using that thing you call a brain next time," Hiei replied.

Kurama sighed, "There is no reason to fight over this."

Youko disagreed with him. ' _Oh, come on, Red. Let them go at it. I bet you that short-stuff kicks Kuwabara's ass in five seconds flat. A thousand yen, how does that sound?_ '

 _ **Hn, I'll bet another thousand for two seconds**_.

 _Hiei, don't encourage him_ , Kurama replied.

' _Yeah right, little bugger! Like you, or anyone, could hit Kuwabara hard enough that he would…_ '

Kurama shook his head, watching as Kuwabara crumbled to the ground.

' _Thanks a lot, Red. I just lost two thousand yen!_ '

 _And how is this my fault_?

' _You seem to forget whose money it is I'm spending_ ,' Youko snickered. ' _Weren't you the one complaining about losing money because of me? Seriously, if you don't want me to, then call them to a stop before they start_.'

Kurama shook his head. Then he turned his attention to Yusuke once more, and asked, "You said that she has to stay with you because of something she refused to do? Would you mind explaining a bit more, Yusuke?"

"Why?" Yusuke smirked. "Interested in my cousin, fox boy?"

"Would you hold it against me if I was?" Kurama asked.

Yusuke frowned. He did not want Kagome to get hurt, especially by someone who had a high sex drive like Kurama. However, if she decided to show interest in him, like she had shown a little in Hiei, then he would not stand in her way of it. It was her life, she could live it however she wanted to, though it might get a little complicated once she found out they were not quite human.

"Well?" Kurama pressed.

"Look, all I heard was that her counselor asked her to look into a mirror and tell her what she saw," Yusuke rolled his eyes. "Apparently Kagome got pissy with her and told her to go to hell. I don't know why, I really don't care why, but Kagome's had this thing with mirrors since about two years ago. My mom mentioned it after Kagome's noticed it the first time, which is probably why she had the counselor in the first place, ok."

"Strange," Kurama muttered.

"You got that right," Yusuke shook his head. "I saw her go by one this morning and she stopped, scowled, and looked ready to break it to pieces. Man, it was one scary glare that she gave that thing—hell, I didn't even know she could get that scary. Made me start wonderin' if it's her time of the month."

"It isn't," Kurama replied.

"What?" Yusuke frowned, his tone dark and protective. How the hell did—

"Idiot, try using your nose," Hiei said. "Any demon could pick up the smell of blood, whether its from a bleeding female or not."

 _Leave it to Hiei_ , Yusuke thought.

* * *

She lifted the small mirror, gazing into its depths the way that she had been told to, and stuck herself in this mess. Though, she would not say that she did not like her new friends, even if some of them took a bit more time to conquer. She would never say that, but she would say that she hated the mirror currently in her hands, and every single one after it. "Stupid thing," she scowled, rearing her hand back to chuck it.

"I do not think that was its intended use."

She was startled for a moment, her hand quickly bringing the mirror to her breast. Then, once she turned, she sighed at her stupidity. "You scared me for a moment there, Kurama," she said.

' _Ah, and what a lovely sight it was, too_.'

 _Not now, Youko_.

"Um, is there something you wanted?" Kagome asked.

' _Other than_ …'

 _Shut_ up _, Youko_.

' _You're no fun, Red_.'

"I apologize if I startled you," Kurama said. "I saw you sitting out here by yourself and could not help but feel that you might like some company."

Kagome blinked, "Oh… um, thank you." She really hated it whenever he was around. She had met him just over a month ago, and still she could not speak to him. Yes, she could tease Yusuke, strike up an intelligent conversation with Hiei, or laugh at Kuwabara's love for cats around him, but she could not speak to him it seemed. She was not sure what it was about him, but his presence pressed down around her, and she felt like she was suffocating, even for a good time after he disappeared.

Kurama nodded. He took a seat beside her, and glanced at the small silver mirror she as now holding to her chest, even when a moment ago she had been ready to throw it as far as she possibly could. The thought still poked at him once in a while, making him curious as to what she saw whenever she looked into one. Especially after he heard from Hiei that she had put her fist through one not even a week after she had arrived—and then her wound had healed strangely, at almost demon speeds.

Kagome tried to release the tension in her body, and forced the mirror away from her breast. She placed it in her lap, but found that she could not raise her eyes to meet his, so she kept them lowered. In doing so, she stared straight into the mirror, the reflection that she hated so much staring back at her as she did so. While doing so, she did not even notice that she clenched her fingers around it a little more, tightening her grip until the metal was biting into her skin.

_Kikyo, how much I hate you…_

Kurama noticed the change almost instantly.

_How much I hate looking like you…_

He leaned a bit closer, looking down at her reflection in the mirror, glaring heatedly at herself.

_But, worst of all, I hate myself for hating you…_

"What do you see?"

Kagome jumped, spinning her head around in order to stare at the male sitting beside her. His voice washed over her, causing a bright blush to shadow her cheeks, and she felt utterly stupid for having done such a thing in front of him. Then, she realized that she was staring into his calculating green eyes, and she quickly rotated her eyes away from his. "Ah, what was it you asked?" she asked softly.

Kurama pried the mirror from her fingers, and raised it so that it was at eyelevel. She turned to look into it, and he leaned down to whisper into her ear once more. He knew that she was uncomfortable with him this close, but it did not stop him from doing so. "Each time you look into the mirror, Kagome, what do you see?" he asked softly.

She met her eyes, staring back at her, and watched as they shifted a bit until they were not hers anymore. They were similar, but they were not hers. "I—"

"Do you want to know what I see?" Kurama asked.

Kagome blushed again when his warm breath ghosted over her skin. However, she could not stop herself from nodding.

"I see a confused, but beautiful young woman who thinks entirely too much on the past," Kurama whispered. "I see her trying to fight something because of something that's been pounded into her head so much. But, mostly, I see a beautiful young woman who does not even realize how beautiful she is."

Kagome stiffened, wondering how in the world he knew that.

Kurama would remember to thank Hiei later for the information, though the hybrid had refused to give up almost all of it. In fact, his friend had seemed a bit troubled and unwilling to give away what he had managed to pry from Kagome's mind. He supposed, though, that whatever he saw was what caused Hiei to become a bit more protective of her.

"I'm not sure what you see, but that's what I see. Almost like there's a butterfly that has not realized quite yet how to fly," he continued.

Kagome's heart picked up the pace.

Kurama pulled away, and placed the small mirror back into her lap. "I'm not quite sure what you see, but I know what I do," he smiled. "And I rather like it."

Kagome fingered the metal edges.

Standing, Kurama looked down at her, and wondered how much more he would see of her before she was sent home. He hoped, though, that it would be a bit, since she was rather intriguing—and the mysterious puzzle hanging over her head made her all the better. "Goodnight, Kagome," he said.

Kagome did not even nod as she heard him retreat inside. His words swam in her head, and she was so unused to hearing anything of the sort that she felt her cheeks heat up a bit more. However, she could not help but wonder if that was truly what he saw, or if he had just been humoring her. She supposed that that was the reason that she picked the mirror back up, and quickly raised it so that she was staring straight at it. She was surprised a moment later, because she was staring at someone she had not been expecting to be staring at.

Kagome was staring at herself.

_-Fin_


End file.
